Last of Her Kind
by captainrodgers
Summary: When Ryan's home in Alfheim is destroyed by the the Muspel fire demons, she retreats to a portal taking her to Asgard where she finds herself determined to seek revenge on the race who robbed her of her family and realm. In this journey of growing up, she is able to mature both physically and mentally with the help of friends.


Chapter 1

Lying still in the tall grass, I watch as Alfari warriors race past me. I can hear my heart pounding in my chest as I slowly raise my head, feeling blood start to pump back to my limbs and I rid myself of the tired feeling from my momentary unconsciousness. I move my hand to my head, feeling a large bump on the left side, just above my hairline. I wince at the sudden pain and pull my arm back to see blood on my hands. Before there's time to react, a hand pulls at my long, curly, brown hair and my back is forced to one of the many trees surrounding me. I look up to see my fathers face and the fear enveloped in his dark eyes. Tears start to well in my eyes as I take in the surroundings of my home realm, Alfheim. Warriors race across the forestlands and I witness the Muspel fire demons of Muspelheim begin to take over more and more of the land, burning everything in their path. "Father," I whisper in a young, high-pitched tone, desperation coating my voice, "I don't want to go," I feel the tears begin to fall down my cheeks and my gaze falls to the ground before being brought back up to meet my fathers gaze.

"Ryan, my sweetheart. You must go," tears now start to coat his face. I throw my arms around him and he pulls me closer. "We don't have much time. The portals are closing, my child." He scoops my small body into his arms and races to one of the many portals the other residents of the realm have escaped to. I hold him in as strong of a grip as my small, nine-year-old hands can muster and I look around only to find many fallen warriors in the forest. The portal, only a few meters away from us now, starts to close and my father yells as we thrust ourselves into the dark depths of space, crossing through the portal to as unknown realm. My heartbeat quickens and a sudden drowsiness and faint feeling overcome me, as I feel my own weight being doubled at the overwhelming speed by which we are traveling.

I try to open my eyes as I lay still in my father's arms. A strong feeling of weariness now has taken over my body and I try to move but I'm unable to conjure the strength. The weights on my eyes and the heavy feeling on my chest keep me still until I hear screaming in the distance. Men, surely the Alfari warriors who made it through the portal now come racing towards me. Their voices become clearer and louder as they approach me at a rapid rate. My eyes slowly open as I try to ignore the massive lethargy that the traveling between realms has caused. I look up to see men all around me, mostly Alfari by the looks of their ears but a few others stand between them, much taller than the elven race. The weight on my chest has not gone away and I look down to see my father, lying still with an arrow buried in his back. My breathing increases and I can feel my heart beginning to pound against my chest at such an intense rate, that my head grows heavy. The feeling of faintness overtakes me as I'm dragged away from my dead father. The world is moving so fast now. Everything has increased in speed and I stand still in a stone courtyard as Alfari warriors crowd around my father. I feel a strong hand on my shoulder and I look up to see an elderly man with white hair and a golden eye patch, attempting to distract me from the dead man in the courtyard. "What is your name?"

My eyes meet his and I burst into tears whilst the many emotions bottled up inside of me start to take over and the realization of my fathers' death comes to terms. "R-Ryan." The words are forced and hardly above a whisper. I don't think I can handle anything above a whisper without my voice losing all control.

He nods, understandingly. "Hector, take this girl to the palace and get her something to eat while I try to figure out what we're going to do with the living situation of our guests." I turn to get a better view of the steps at the entrance of the courtyard to see a silver-uniformed guard with a tree engraved into the front of his breastplate.

The man named Hector approaches me and takes my hand in his to guide me towards the palace, away from the Alfari warriors still in the courtyard. I want to protest and insist on staying by my father's side but the shock has overtaken me and I'm unable to speak. Upon reaching the grand palace, the guard departs and returns to the courtyard, leaving me standing alone in front of a large pair of golden doors. The area feels uncomfortable and I begin to feel self conscious from the lack of trees and openness of the realm. I pull my hair out of its band and it comes toppling down my shoulders, allowing my thick curls and bangs to frame my face.

I can't even bring myself to cry anymore. My face feels dry and worn down and I can taste the salt on my lips from my tears. My eyes go wide as I long for my father and sit down on the marble floor, just outside the palace, and curl into a fetal position, holding my knees to my chest. Though my tears have stopped falling from my eyes, I have not stopped whimpering. I try to muffle my noises my holding the crease of my arm to my mouth and noise and try to calm myself. Slowly, my chest stops heaving and I'm able to breathe normally until I'm interrupted b an unknown figure.

A beautiful woman kneels down by my side and places her hand on my back, gently rubbing it and whispers kind words to me. "Little girl, what is your name?" Her voice is smooth and divine.

I'm not even sure if I can push the words out of my throat now as I lay still on the cold marble. "Ryan," my voice is quiet and no longer shocked or unsure. It just pours from my mouth and my eyes glaze over as I stare out to the courtyard where the crowd begins to clear.

"Well, then Miss Ryan, how about we go get you washed up," I slowly rise and am greeted by an arm cast around my shoulder, ushering me into the palace, away from the courtyard where my eyes continue to look back towards.

I wish to ask for her name, where I am, where my father is, but I'm unable to bring myself to it. I've drifted into a daze where I'm just fulfilling tasks without thought. There's nothing but shock.

The woman guides me to a washroom and lifts my small body onto the edge of a sink. From there, I'm able to look into the mirror and take in my reflection. My hair is a mess of brown curls, stretching to the middle of my back and bangs that are currently glued to my forehead from dried blood. My light skin is met with dark circles with hazel eyes at the center, showing my exhaustion. Several cuts cover my face and body and dirt is everywhere.

My attention is drawn away from my reflection by a hand pulling at my chin to meet the woman's gaze. "I am Queen Frigga of Asgard," she runs her hand through my hair, pushing it behind my pointed ears, "and you are one of the Alfari?" I nod my head and she gives a small smile. "We will find a place for you all to stay, then Ryan." She takes a small cloth and runs it under hot water and dabs it at my face, cleaning off the blood and dirt.

When she finishes, she takes me to a large banquet hall where many of the other Alfari warriors are. I scan the room but I find only men. No women, no children. Only men. I continue to scan the room until I find a familiar face. Before there is time to think or react, I sprint towards Gaius Louinson, a close friend of my fathers, and throw my arms around his legs, desperate for familiarity. He looks down at me and lifts me up into his arms, running his fingers through my hair hushing me as I cry. "I am so sorry about your father, Ryan," he whispers and then puts me down.

Another familiar face comes over and greets me and I'm met face to face by the elderly man with the golden eye patch with Frigga on his arm. "Ryan," I look up at him and his face is expressionless, "I am Odin, King of Asgard. I must tell you that it hurts me deeply to see your race in such a state but it appears you are what is left of the Alfari race. I know not how the fire demons were able to move between realms and we will find out but your home realm has been destroyed and this is what's left of your race." A quiet sob manages to escape my lips, "I know this is difficult for you but your are also the last…woman of the elven race. I will not force you to share quarters with these warriors so you will have a room outfitted for you and-"

"Sire, that really isn't necessary, I can just-"

"It is plenty necessary. I will have one of the maids escort you to your room. You've had a long day." I nod my head in response and he speaks again, "do you have any family members among these ranks?"

My voice gets quieter as I attempt to fight back tears, "M-My father…. he…he was the man in the courtyard."

"I see, then there is no one to take care of you?" I shake me head. "Then I would prefer for you to stay in the palace as our guest whilst everything is sorted out." I nod my head before being led away by one of the maids towards my new chambers.

When we reach a long corridor of rooms, we stop on the right side of the hall at a door and the maid opens it with a small key. She looks down at me with sympathetic eyes before opening the door and as she opens it, I come face to face with an extremely small room, fit with a bed, a small bathroom and a nightstand by the bed. I walk into the dark room and light the candle by the bedside, allowing light to flood the room. The maid closes the door and leaves me by myself. I slowly glide over to the bed and sit down before curling into a ball to sleep.


End file.
